PM on Cliffs’ decision: Talk to Ontario

Ottawa (1): PM “…. Asked by a reporter if he was going to do anything to get the Ring of Fire back on track following the decision by a major U.S. mining company on Thursday to suspend its operations in the area, Harper said it isn’t his problem. “This is a project that is primarily under provincial jurisdiction because ultimately resources belong to the provinces and resource development is a provincial responsibility,” Harper said. “Obviously we have been talking to Ontario over the past few years in terms of regulatory approval processes, in terms of infrastructure investments and in terms of making sure First Nations continue to benefit,” he told reporters. “The jurisdiction here is primarily provincial, and ultimately it is private companies themselves that have to make commercial decisions on the viability of projects.” ….”Source

Ottawa (2): Ring of Fire minister“The federal government says Ontario should have responded sooner to the needs of a big mining company before it pulled out of the Ring of Fire. Greg Rickford, minister of state for FedNor, says uncertainty over whether an all-season road would be built was a factor, and the province needs to deal with it. Rickford says big companies looking to develop the massive chromite deposit in northern Ontario can’t proceed until they know what direction they’re going to go. Speaking in Timmins, Ont., Rickford said he has every indication that Ontario’s governing Liberals understand what the challenges are moving ahead. But he says they should have collaborated more with him, First Nations and the companies before announcing a development corporation to move the project along. Rickford says he’s disappointed that Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. has suspended its Ring of Fire operations indefinitely, but the company is “very satisfied” with the federal government’s involvement in the project ….”Source

Ottawa (3) Ring of Fire minister“…. the federal minister responsible for northern Ontario sounded worried. In an telephone interview with CBC News on Thursday, Greg Rickford expressed concern over what he calls the “legacy project” for the remote area. “We’re very disappointed by this and we take it very seriously,” he said. “Not only does this represent a legacy project for Ontario, but the world, including investors, have their eyes on us and we want to get this right.” The Conservative government has made it a policy to make resource development a big part of its economic plan. The Ring of Fire is on the list of major projects frequently cited by Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver. And it’s been called “Ontario’s oilsands” by provincial Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak. Rickford points out his government has invested $4.4 million to help First Nations prepare business plans for the resource activity that may come their way. But the federal Conservatives seem prepared to wait for the Ontario government to try to get the mining company to return ….”Source

Ottawa (4) Ring of Fire minister “…. in some ways, it wasn’t that surprising, said the minister of state for FedNor, the economic development organization for northern Ontario. “I think that the announcement Cliffs made reflects uncertainty in a broader business sense,” Rickford said in Timmins, Ont. “The commodity market hasn’t been that great for them, and in this case, they’re waiting on some things the province ought to have responded to a little bit sooner.” Ontario’s governing Liberals need to deal with the dispute over access to the site, because big companies looking to develop the massive chromite deposit can’t proceed until they know “what direction they’re going to go.” “This challenge, I think, sits squarely in the premier’s office,” Rickford said. “The world is watching, this is a legacy resource project and we want to get it right for the multi-generations of northern Ontarians that can benefit from this.” Ontario seems to understand the challenges that lie ahead and is willing to work more collaboratively, he added. But the province should have collaborated more with the federal government, First Nations and the companies involved before announcing a development corporation to move the project along. “We would have appreciated a little bit more collaboration and notice in that since what it considers is fairly large in scope, from what I can gather, although it’s not been shared with me at this point,” he said. “And I think the First Nations and the private sector companies implicated feel the same way.” ….”Source

Rae/Matawa “…. Former Liberal Leader Bob Rae, who is the lead negotiator for the Matawa Tribal Council Chiefs, is taking the long view. “The minerals in the ground aren’t disappearing, they are still there, they won’t go stale,” said Rae in telephone interview with CBC. “The interests of First Nations haven’t changed either. They’re very committed to working with the government and committed to working with the private sector and seeing what’s possible as we go forward.”Source